{"text":[[{"start":8.95,"text":"Drugmaker Sandoz has called for the European Commission to launch an investigation into Chinese imports of a key ingredient used in a popular antibiotic, alleging unfair state subsidies. "}],[{"start":20.549999999999997,"text":"The world’s largest maker of generic drugs said Chinese imports of amoxicillin trihydrate, an active ingredient of the most widely used antibiotic in Europe, reflected “significant state intervention” and “non-market pricing”, according to a complaint submitted in March and seen by the FT."}],[{"start":38.5,"text":"The Swiss group, which was spun off from Novartis in 2023, has asked the Commission for “corrective” measures to protect the EU’s industry and the “resilience of its supply of this key medicinal ingredient”. "}],[{"start":50,"text":"Sandoz called for additional duties to prevent the market being flooded with subsidised “ultra-cheap” imports, joining a list of companies that have complained about Chinese oversupply in sectors from wind turbines to chemicals, which they say will foster dependence on China. "}],[{"start":66,"text":"“If no corrective action is taken, the EU risks . . . becoming structurally dependent on China for its most essential antibiotic, with clear implications for supply security and patient access,” Sandoz said in its complaint. "}],[{"start":79.3,"text":"It said Chinese imports undercut EU prices by about 47 per cent, making production in the bloc difficult and reinforcing reliance on Asia for ingredients of medicines. An estimated 80 per cent of amoxicillin active pharmaceutical ingredients are imported from the continent, according to healthcare data provider IQVIA."}],[{"start":99.9,"text":"Zurich-listed Sandoz said the Commission had yet to respond to its submission. It acknowledged that a full anti-dumping investigation could take a year, but has asked for the complaint to be granted a priority review. "}],[{"start":112.9,"text":"Sandoz said in a statement to the FT that its action was “the first such case filed in the industry in several decades”, adding that the EU should “apply anti-dumping duties to prevent foreign companies flooding global markets with ultra-cheap, state-subsidised penicillin APIs.”"}],[{"start":130.6,"text":"Anti-dumping complaints from Europe’s chemical groups have reached an all-time high, while Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever, is among European politicians who have called for action against Chinese overcapacity in several industries. "}],[{"start":144.6,"text":"In a letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in March, De Wever said given that the EU’s trade deficit with China reached €360bn last year, it was important for the region to protect industries including the energy transition, pharmaceuticals and chemicals."}],[{"start":162.15,"text":"The country was “evolving from partner and competitor to a systemic rival through state-driven overcapacity, technological upgrading, and strategic control of critical resources”, he wrote. "}],[{"start":173.05,"text":"China’s foreign ministry has previously dismissed claims that it causes overcapacity as a “departure from the objective facts”, adding that “protectionism cannot enhance competitiveness and blaming others cannot solve one’s own problems”."}],[{"start":186.75,"text":"Sandoz said India’s anti-dumping directive earlier this year, which introduced measures that included minimum import prices for the amoxicillin family of drugs, was a model that Europe could follow."}],[{"start":197.55,"text":"The Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment."}],[{"start":202.10000000000002,"text":"Additional reporting by Andy Bounds in Brussels"}],[{"start":213.45000000000002,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1779430942_6542.mp3"}